Easy Granola

This granola recipe is one of my favorite things to make. It's easy, you can make it super quick, it smells amazing while it's baking and it's really satisfying to eat! One of my favorite things is to have jars full of homemade granola ready to grab as a quick, healthy breakfast or an after work/school snack. It has a fraction of the sugar of store-bought brands and it's WAY cheaper! It goes great on top of thick smoothies too. Click to see my favorite smoothie recipe. I like to double or even triple the recipe below. Then I only bake once and have granola for a month. 

Ingredients

• 2 cups thick rolled oats
• 1/2 cup nuts (my favorite is slivered almonds but play with it up to make different varieties)
• 1/4 cup seeds (I use half flax and half chia)
• 1/2 cup unsweetened coconut flakes
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract (almond extract is good too)
• 1/4 cup coconut oil
• 1/3 cup raw, unfiltered honey
• 2 tbs almond butter (optional)
• 1/2 tsp salt or to taste
• Cinnamon to taste

Directions

• Preheat oven to 350
• In a medium saucepan heat the coconut oil, honey, almond butter, cinnamon and vanilla extract on low heat until liquid
• While that's heating, in a large mixing bowl, toss oats, nuts, seeds and coconut flakes until combined
• Pour the warm oil mixture over the dry mixture, sprinkle the salt on and toss until every oat and nut is covered
• Spread mixture on a flat cookie tray, cake pan or pyrex dish. The thinner you can spread it the better but when i double or triple the recipe it gets pretty deep and still turns out great! You just might have to stir it more if it's thicker on the tray.
• Bake for 10 minutes
• Take out and toss/stir to mix up what's on top and bottom. Bake another 5-15 minutes (depending on how deep your layers are) until the edges are just starting to brown
• It won't be crunchy when you take it out but let it cook for 10-15 minutes and you will have delicious, crunchy, homemade granola
• I like to store mine in large ball jars. I usually put one in the cabinet, one in the fridge and the rest in the freezer. Since it has healthy oils in it it can go rancid so keep what you are going to eat right away in an easy to grab place and put the rest in the fridge or freezer until you are ready to eat it. 
• ENJOY!

Goodies In this Recipe

Oats- Oats are rich in a specific type of fiber called beta-glucan. This particular type of fiver is known to help lower levels of bad cholesterol. One cup of oats contains 8.2 g or fiber as well as important vitamins and minerals including zinc (which helps boost your immune system), Vitamin E (a powerful antioxidant) and, flavonoids (which have been shown to reduce the risk of cancer, heart disease, asthma and stroke).  If you have a gluten allergy, just buy gluten-free oats. 

Flax & Chia Seeds-Chia and flax seeds are packed with protein and fiber as well as a whole bunch of vitamins and minerals including B1, Manganese, Magnesium, Phosphorus and Selenium. They are also high in healthy fats (the kind that actually helps your body burn bad fat) as well as omega-3's. 

Almond Butter-This adds an extra level of creaminess to the smoothie as well as adds 3.4 g of extra protein and a little extra healthy fat to help you stay full all day long. 

Cinnamon- Cinnamon is loaded with antioxidants and has anti-inflammatory properties. It also helps control blood sugar. This is important because it helps you stay full longer, reduces cravings and keeps you from having an energy spike and crash (which is what happens with normal, sugary breakfast cereals).